Russia - When Moscow’s Zaryadye concert hall opened it became one of the most technologically advanced venues in Russia. It features a large complement of Claypaky lighting fixtures in its 1,600-seat philharmonic auditorium and the smaller, 400-seat theatre. Zaryadye is part of a new park adjacent to Red Square and next to the Kremlin walls. Its Philharmonic auditorium is equipped with stage machinery, precisely chosen lighting gear and integrated engineering technologies that allow it to host different types of productions from classical music concerts and theatrical performances to international conferences and shows. Claypaky fixtures selected for the hall include 54 A.leda K-EYE K20s, 12 Scenius spots, 12 Scenius profiles and 30 Show Batten LED linear lights. The K-EYEs were chosen for their quiet operation, notes Vasily Litvin, Lighting Director of the DOKA Center, a Claypaky distributor in Moscow, which has been involved with the project since Zaryadye’s conception in 2015. “As the stage is intended for acoustic concerts a minimal level of technological noise was one of the main priorities when choosing the equipment,” he says. “Nothing should disturb visitors while they enjoy the tailor-made acoustic characteristics of the auditorium.” He finds the K-EYEs to be “ideal for the orchestra pit and auditoriums: Their new 6-color system of color synthesis provides a white which does not differ from a classic halogen lamp while at the same time enables the user to change colour temperature or work with tones”. The same fixtures are used in the hall’s smaller auditorium for main and stage lighting. Lighting equipment is mounted on special mechanisms to lift the spots up above the ceiling and permit technical maintenance without dismantling them. All stage machinery equipment installed at Zaryadye is intended for comfort and optimal maintenance. The new concert hall has quickly garnered fans among them Damir Ismagilov, the main lighting designer of the Bolshoi Theatre who contributed to the stage lighting design of the hall. He calls the venue “full of surprises” and says, “The complex and sophisticated combination of lighting and technical equipment is capable of transforming every single event into a one-of-a-kind performance.” (Jim Evans)